Biology PhD Thesis Submission Checklist

  1. Format your thesis according to the Graduate School's Thesis Formatting & Preparation Guidelines. See also Biology Thesis Submission Guidelines.
  2. Complete the Application for Approval of External Examiner and give it to the Graduate Program Advisor for approval. This is best done well in advance as this person must be approved by the both the Graduate Coordinator and the School of Graduate Studies.
  3. Email a completed PhD Oral Thesis Examination Form to biologygradassistant@queensu.ca at least 30 business days (this does not include the day of your defence) before the defense date so that they can find a suitable Head’s Delegate and Chair for your defense. Date and time of defense MUST be finalized with the other members of your thesis defense committee before you submit this form to the Graduate Program Advisor. The Graduate Advisor will send the completed form to the Graduate School to register your defense for you.
  4. Your supervisor is responsible for setting up the Zoom or TEAMS link and sending the links to everyone.
  5. 25 business days (this does not include the day of the defence) before the date of your defense, distribute pdfs of your thesis via email to all of the members of your thesis defense committee, and include the Graduate Advisor so they can email your thesis to the Head’s Delegate, the external examiner and to the Thesis Coordinator at SGSPA. Your thesis will be screened by the graduate School for formatting issues and you will be notified of any required corrections. If you have prepared this pdf with line numbers, or single-spaced, etc (see Biology Thesis Submission Guidelines), please inform the Graduate office and note that you will conform to the Graduate School's thesis format requirements when you submit your final copy.

Last updated November 2025.